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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23494219">Broken Glass Diamonds</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Naji_Dragonchild/pseuds/Naji_Dragonchild'>Naji_Dragonchild</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>And all the world will bow down [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Sanders Sides (Web Series)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Background Anxiety | Virgil Sanders, Background Deceit Sanders, Background Logic | Logan Sanders, Blood and Injury, Childhood Trauma, Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders &amp; Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders Are Twins, Genderfluid Character, Genderfluid Morality | Patton Sanders, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Kid Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders, Kid Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders, Morality | Patton Sanders is a Sweetheart, Nonbinary Character, Sympathetic Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders, Trans Male Character</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-04-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-06-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 09:47:29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>7,585</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23494219</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Naji_Dragonchild/pseuds/Naji_Dragonchild</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Roman dreamt of becoming a hero for his entire life.<br/>Given a chance to fulfil his dream he joins one of the many hero organizations in an attempt to prove himself.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders &amp; Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders, Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders &amp; Morality | Patton Sanders</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>And all the world will bow down [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1690402</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>22</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Dragon Witch</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>There are a few words in Spanish and since I used Google Translate I apologize if anything is wrong.</p><p>Please read the tags and stay safe!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Roman remembered the first time he saw a super in action vividly even after all these years.<br/>
He had been five back then.<br/>
Five and naive, with thousand dreams and wishes for his future.<br/>
Astronaut, cowboy, actor, detective and, of course, like probably every kid his age, superhero.</p><p>But the first super he saw wasn't a hero.<br/>
It was a villain.</p><p>The Dragon Witch, people would later call her. Whispering the name in fear that even just mentioning her aloud would summon her.</p><p>Roman remembered that they had been at a mall on that day.<br/>
Mamá had bought them ice cream. For him Chocolate, for Remus Banana and as always they had let the other have a little bit of their own because Mamá liked it when they got along and the combination of both Chocolate and Banana was great.</p><p>He remembered almost running into a woman with a floral print dress and stuttering out a 'sorry' and then the glass ceiling collapsed.<br/>
Shards of glass rained down.<br/>
People screamed.<br/>
The flowers on the woman's dress were shredded.<br/>
New, red ones grew on the bright fabric and she fell to the floor.</p><p>Roman looked up.</p><p>A giant dragon landed in the food court. It had brown scales and yellow fire puffed from its nostrils.</p><p>Remus grabbed him and pulled him back behind a corner and they both peeked out from behind it.<br/>
Remus didn't let go of his hand.<br/>
Neither did Roman.</p><p>Mamá had told them to stick together if anything happened. To protect each other.</p><p>"Un dragón", Remus whispered and Roman couldn't tell if he was excited or scared. "Un dragón verdadero."</p><p>The dragon began to shrink and shift until all that was left was a woman with scales on her arms and face and wings standing in the middle of the broken glass.</p><p>A few people had fallen.<br/>
A lot more were hiding just like the twins were.</p><p>The Dragon Witch said something.<br/>
She spoke loudly but Roman couldn't understand her.<br/>
She was speaking English and using too many words he didn't recognize so that even the few familiar ones sounded foreign in the mass of unknown gibberish. </p><p>"Donde esta mamá?" Roman asked. Mamá always told them what the words they couldn't understand meant but now Roman couldn't see her anywhere.</p><p>"No lo se," Remus shrugged.</p><p>A young man grabbed a roasting spit and ran at the woman with a shout.<br/>
Her wing hit him before he even reached her. He was thrown through the air and crashed into the wall just next to the twins' hiding spot. </p><p>Looking back Roman was pretty sure that at that point he had been in shock.</p><p>The young man didn't get up from his position slumped against the wall.<br/>
Something red tickled over the dark skin of his temple and from his lips.</p><p>Police sirens cut through the air suddenly, making Roman jump.</p><p>But before the policemen could make it into the building the woman had already turned into a big red dragon and as she flew up towards the hole in the roof thousands of coins and jewellery flew towards her like metal to a magnet and stuck to her body until she was fully cooper and gold.<br/>
In a twisted way, it was beautiful.</p><p>Paramedics checked over the people and at some point, a blanket found its way over the twins' shoulders.<br/>
They sat on the steps in front of the mall, still holding onto each other, neither having spoken a word since the Dragon Witch had disappeared.</p><p>"Donde esta mamá?" Remus asked quietly after a while. His voice shaking.</p><p>Roman looked around.<br/>
There were many people on the steps, most of them crying, a few looking for others.<br/>
Then he spotted a familiar head of black hair pulled up in a bun.</p><p>"Mamá!" he called and tried to stand up but his legs gave out underneath him and he plopped back down.</p><p>She turned at his voice, spotted them and came running towards them.</p><p>"Roman! Remus! Estas herido?" she hugged them close, pulled back and frantically looked them over. "Oh, mis hijos." </p><p>"Nosotros estamos bien!" Roman told her and burried his face in her shirt.</p><p>For a long time, the three of them just sat there, holding on to each other.<br/>
Roman wasn't sure when he and Remus had started to cry.</p><p>It wasn't a day he liked to think off.<br/>
It haunted him.<br/>
To this day, despite being an adult now, he felt anxious in malls and under glass roofs.</p><p>Over the years people became less afraid of the Dragon Witch.<br/>
A hero showed up, calling herself Lauda and fought against the Dragon Witch time and time again.<br/>
By the time Roman was ten, there were no casualties mentioned on the news anymore and his dream to become a hero himself was cemented even further.<br/>
When he was thirteen his friends began to talk about how the hero and the villain should hook up and he told them that they were being stupid. A hero and a villain couldn't fall in love.</p><p>"Have you watched the news lately? They are sooo gay for each other!" Lauren laughed at him. </p><p>He hadn't been watching the news. At least not the fights. Seeing the Dragon Witch still stirred up too many bad memories.<br/>
Mamá had sent him and Remus to a therapist a few times after the incident but hadn't been able to afford it for long. As soon as Remus and him went to school she had to make the choice between proper meals or therapy and she choose the food.</p><p>When the twins were fourteen they presented with abilities.<br/>
Remus made the rat in the kitchen cabinet obey his every will and Roman burned bright and hot without ever burning himself.<br/>
Mamá was proud of them, helped them figure out their abilities as well as she could without having one herself and whispered that she had always known that they were extraordinary.</p><p>When Roman turned fifteen he started carrying out newspapers and picking up every job he could cramp into his schedule or that Remus hadn't gotten to first. He lost most of his friends during that time. Both of them did even if Remus hadn't had many friends, to begin with.</p><p>"We never hang out anymore!"</p><p>"Come on! Come to Henry's party with us! It'll be awesome!"</p><p>"You don't do anything besides working and studying!"</p><p>Roman always wanted to tell them that that wasn't true. He did have hobbies. He was part of the drama club. He wrote stories and poetry and even sew if you could consider patching up ripped clothes a hobby.<br/>
He never did though and on Christmas Eve he realized that it was just the three of them again.<br/>
Him, Remus and Mamá.</p><p>But he'd be a hero one day and then things would be different.<br/>
They'd move into a nice house without mould in the kitchen, that never got cold in winter, because as bright as he could burn the house could burn too and he knew that that would mean their death, and they'd have a big meal for holidays and he and Remus wouldn't have to put their money together to buy Mamá a nice gift.<br/>
He'd save peoples lives and they would love him for it.</p><p>So he curled up under his blanket, tried not to shiver as snow fell outside and held onto that dream.</p><p>Remus moved out as soon as they graduated.<br/>
He only let them know that he had gotten a scholarship <em>somewhere</em> but wouldn't tell either of them where and what for.<br/>
He let Roman help him pack his bag, hugged him, gave Mamá a kiss on the cheek and then he took the next train to <em>somewhere</em>.</p><p>Roman applied himself to the nearest T.L.I.H. program.</p><p>"You really want to try out for being a hero?" Mamá had asked and looked so damn tired like she hadn't slept in years.</p><p>"Yes, and I will make it", he told her.</p><p>Mamá had sighed tiredly but smiled.</p><p>"It's supposed to be extremely hard", she just said as if he didn't know.</p><p>"I will make it."</p><p>When two weeks later a letter came telling him that he had been accepted to the program he still couldn't believe it. </p><p>200 spots, over 35000 applicants and he had gotten in.</p><p>Of the 200 people 10 would become heros at most.</p><p>And Roman would be damned if he let this chance slip through his fingers.</p><p>He didn't have the money for a gym membership but he and Remus had found ways to work out anyway over the years.<br/>
After the third fight you begin to learn how to fight.</p><p>Since the T.L.I.H. program started in October for months Roman did everything in his power to prepare himself.</p><p>On October 4th, standing in front of the address they had sent him - a tiny hotel that didn't seem like the right place o train future heroes at all but maybe that was the point - he had nothing but a bag of worn clothes, a crumpled twenty, an old burner phone, an old notebook with a pen and his mothers blessing.<br/>
His knees felt weak and he couldn't tell whether the nausea was because of nerves or because he hadn't eaten since yesterday.</p><p>If this didn't work out he'd have no back-up plan.<br/>
The chances of being accepted to the program twice were lower than being struck by lightning three times, three years in a row on the same day while wearing the same clothes.</p><p>Failure wasn't an option.</p><p>Mamá was counting on him.</p><p>Roman pushed open the hotel door and made a face when it squeaked loud enough to ring in his ears.</p><p>The lobby was grey, lit by two neon lights. One was broken.<br/>
At the counter, a teen sat, a few years younger than Roman and looked up from re-doing his eyeliner, obviously bored out of his mind.<br/>
The kid looked like a stereotypical emo. Lauren would have been jealous of that eyeshadow.</p><p>"I'm here for the T.L.I.H. program", Roman told him confidently.</p><p>"Figured that much", the kid - Julian DiCaprio, according to his nametag - mumbled and his voice sounded slightly too feminine. "Name?"</p><p>"Roman. Roman Rodriguez."</p><p>Julian tipped around on the ancient computer keyboard, nodded to himself and stood up to get a key off the wall behind him.</p><p>"Follow me", he ordered and sauntered towards the elevator like he owned the place.</p><p>"I think I can find the room on my own," Roman tried but Julian acted like he couldn't hear him and pressed the 4 a couple of times until the button finally lit up.</p><p>"What's your shoe size?" he asked instead catching Roman off guard.</p><p>"My- My what?"</p><p>"Shoe size. What is it?"</p><p>The elevator arrived and slip halfway open. Julian slipped through the gap and Roman followed him.</p><p>"I don't know? 18, maybe?"</p><p>"Shirt size?"</p><p> "Wha- Why do you want to know that?" Roman sputtered. He had the sneaking suspicion the kid was going to make fun of him. He knew that his shirt was too big, damn it.</p><p>Julian looked him dead in the eye.</p><p>"Do you know how many people get in here just because they're rich?  They are pretty good but they never would have reached that level without money. About 90% of the candidates are rich kids according to Mama. Do you know what they will do with you if you show up looking like this? They will tear you apart like chickens."</p><p>Roman was quiet for a moment.</p><p>"Chickens aren't threatening," he then said. "They only eat seeds and worms."</p><p>"Wrong. They eat anything. Once saw a few chicken tear apart a steak in under a minute. They are mini dinosaurs, those feathery beasts."</p><p>Roman frowned and looked down at his stained and torn jeans.</p><p>"Few years ago a guy showed up looking like that," Julian continued. "He was good. Could control gravity. Heart in the right spot. They drove him to attempt suicide within half a year. Mama doesn't want that to happen again so she makes sure that people like you get something presentable. If you don't know your sizes we'll just have to measure."</p><p>A tiny smile spread over Julian's black lips at the last few words.</p><p>"Do you like measuring out?" Roman asked.</p><p>"With guys," Julian said and the elevator finally came to a stop. "Most of you are ripped as fuck and I'm gay as hell."</p><p>Roman hummed in acknowlegement.</p><p>"How did you know I wouldn't beat you up for that?" he asked following Julian down the hallway.</p><p>Julian looked back for a moment, eyes wandering down and then up again.</p><p>"I have awesome gaydar. Besides, I doubt Mama would've let you in if you did that."</p><p>"Who is your mother?" Roman asked. She must be an important person to be able to make all those decisions.</p><p>"Wouldn't you like to know, weather boy?"</p><p>Roman raised an eyebrow as Julian unlocked one of the many doors.</p><p>"Really? Quoting Vines?"</p><p>Julian shrugged and let Roman into the hotel room.</p><p>It was just as shabby as the rest of the hotel but warmer than his room at home and there were no bugs so he could deal with it.</p><p>"Here's your key. I'll just go and get the measuring tape," Julian told him and disappeared again.</p><p>Roman watched him go. When he entered the elevator again Roman went to unpack his stuff, as little as it was and called Mamá to tell her that he had made it safely. She always got anxious when it came to anyone using the subway and he didn't want her to drive herself crazy.</p><p>Julian came back a little later, made Roman write down whatever he measured, took the paper and studied it for a moment before doing that thing again that Roman was pretty sure was Julian's way of checking him out.</p><p>"You like floral prints?" he then asked.</p><p>Roman shrugged. "I've never worn anything like that."</p><p>Julian nodded in acknowledgement.</p><p>"I'll get you a few things to try. You can just pick out what you like then. Oh, and before I forget, dinner is at eight on the second floor. There are signs, so you should be able to find it just fine."</p><p>Roman glanced at the clock over the door. He still had over an hour.<br/>
Taking a seat on the bed he pulled out his notebook and began to write.<br/>
For almost half an hour he wrote and rewrote, completely sunken into the story, before someone knocked again.</p><p>He opened the door to Julian and another young man who looked a bit older than Roman. Roman found himself staring at the left half of his face that was a lot darker than the other.<br/>
Both were carrying two bags each.</p><p>Julian pushed past Roman and set the bags down on the bed, his companion doing the same before checking his phone and cursing.</p><p>"Fucking hell, I'm gonna be late," he sent a glare over to Julian. "This is the last time I help you with this stuff!"</p><p>Then he hurried down the hallway.</p><p>"Sorry about my brother. He's trying to start a company or something and really stressed lately," Julian told Roman. "Anyway. You can try on this stuff if you want to, the things you don't want you can just bring down to the counter. If I'm not there just put it under the key wall, okay?"</p><p>He didn't wait for an answer and closed the door behind himself forcefully.</p><p>For a moment Roman just stood there, stunned, before he slowly moved over to the bed.</p><p>He picked out the first shirt and pants he found and pulled them on.<br/>
A black shirt with red flowers and dark jeans.<br/>
It fit perfectly.<br/>
He looked at himself in the bathroom mirror and realized with a start just how different he looked wearing it.<br/>
He looked like a damn model or something, with his muscles faintly visible and the rolled-up sleeves. The fabric was soft against his skin.</p><p>He looked handsome.</p><p>Roman looked through the other bags, looked through all these nice clothes and wondered just how much money Julian had spent on this stuff.<br/>
He couldn't find a price tag anywhere but guessed that it must've been at least 200$.</p><p>So, he brought it back down to the counter.</p><p>Julian was painting his nails as he came down and raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"Something wrong with them?" he asked.</p><p>"I can't take this."</p><p>Julius' eyebrow crept higher.</p><p>"Why not?"</p><p>"This stuff is worth a fortune! I could never pay you back for this!"</p><p>"You're not supposed to," Julian said calmly and checked if the paint on his pinky was dry. "Look, just take it. It's a gift. No one ever teach you that you're not supposed to give gifts back? Now go back up. Dinner's soon. And don't you dare leave the clothes here."</p><p>Roman wanted to argue but Julian sent him a glare and he gave up.</p><p>"Fine, I'll take it."</p><p>Part of Roman had expected the dining room to be full of others like him but when he came down a few minutes before eight the only other people were a punk couple and an old lady.</p><p>A young woman distributed potato soup with sausage at a small counter.<br/>
Compared to the rest of the hotel it was completely clean here.</p><p>Roman ate, watched the punks flirt for a bit ("I'd dismantle the government for you.") and went back up to his room, where he soon fell into a deep dreamless sleep.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Thomas</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When Roman came down for breakfast the next morning the old lady was wearing a fur coat a la Cruella De Vil with three cats all over her and the punk couple had abandoned their half finished food in favour of making out with eachother.<br/>Roman decided to watch the cats and not the punks this time.</p>
<p>Just as he finished his second toast Julian plopped down on the chair next to him making Roman jump.</p>
<p>"When the fuck did you get here?" he blurted.</p>
<p>"Doesn't matter," Julian waved off and put a piece of paper onto the table infront of Roman.</p>
<p>"What's that?"</p>
<p>"Schedule."</p>
<p>"What schedule?"</p>
<p>Julian raised an eyebrow at him.</p>
<p>"Your schedule. So you know where to be and when for the first two weeks. After that the schedules will be hung up on the blackboard but none of you know where the blackboard is yet so I get to play mail man. Yay."</p>
<p>"Oh," Roman said feeling a bit stupid. </p>
<p>"You gonna drink that coffee?" Julian asked pointing at his cup.</p>
<p>"Er... No? It's even worse than the stuff my brother makes which is quite a feat cause he does it without coffee powder. I'm not even sure this can legally be called coffee," Roman gave the dark liquid a little swirl or at least tried to. He had expected it to move like water rather than chunky honey.</p>
<p>"Can I have it?" Julian asked.</p>
<p>"Did you listen to a single thing I said?" Roman shot back.</p>
<p>"Yeah, and you said that you weren't going to drink it," the teen shrugged and began drumming on the table with his nails. "So can I have it? Please? She won't let me get anymore for myself."</p>
<p>He gestured at the young woman who had distributed the food the night before and now kept watch over the breakfast buffet.</p>
<p>"Why not?" Roman asked confused.</p>
<p>"Some bullshit about how 'twenty cups are too much' and 'that stuff will kill you'. So, can I have yours or not? I need it!"</p>
<p>"You've had twenty cups already?"</p>
<p>"Twenty-two. Not the point."</p>
<p>Roman stared at Julian for a few moments. He was aware that other people were different but he knew from experience that he himself was vibrating with energy after just two cups of coffee (though that might also be because he rarely drank it in the first place) but the teen infront of him looked far from energised. In fact Roman  wouldn't be surprised if he were to pass out from exhaustion at any moment.</p>
<p>"Are you okay?" he asked.</p>
<p>"If never been okay for once in my life," Julian replied deadpan.</p>
<p>Roman slid the  cup over to him and picked up the schedule while the teen downed the coffee in one glup.</p>
<p>"What time is it?" he asked, seeing that he was supposed to be somewhere at 8:45.</p>
<p>"Half past eight, time to get the fuck out of here. Good luck," Julian jumped up and fled out of the room with one glance back to the food counter.</p>
<p>Roman turned to see the young woman come over to his table. Now that she was close enough he could read her name tag too. Sarah Miles.</p>
<p>"Did you give him coffee?" she asked.</p>
<p>"Uh, yes."</p>
<p>Sarah sighed.</p>
<p>"If one of his mum's asks I am <em>so</em> throwing you under the bus, just so we're clear," she said pointedly and shuffled back to the buffet.</p>
<p>Roman watched her go and decided to unpack that later. He had fifteen minutes to get where ever he was supposed to go and depending on whether the elevator decided to work or not he'd probably have to hurry.</p>
<p>On the schedule it just said garage as meeting point and after a quick stop by the counter Roman had found out that apparently whoever had written it had no idea what the difference between a garage and a basement were.</p>
<p>So he took the elevator down.</p>
<p>It slowly came to a stop and for the first time in the time he had used it a few strained notes of a melody came out of the speakers. It reminded him of something one might hear in a horror movie. Was this the beginning of one and he was some stupid guy who just ignored all the red flags until some masked psycho either kidnapped him or stabbed him?</p>
<p>The elevator stopped and opened just enough for him to get his hands through and push the doors open.<br/>As soon as he was through it went up again.</p>
<p>Roman found himself standing in a giant hall, at least the size of three football fields, with a group of people. <br/>The other applicants.<br/>He could feel their eyes on him, seizing him up and there was a hostility in the air.<br/>In here every one wanted to achieve but only few could. Everyone was a rival.</p>
<p>Roman kept his head high as he walked away from the elevator. He couldn't show weakness. Suddenly he was glad that Julian had insisted he kept the clothes and he understood why the teen had told him that they'd tear him apart.</p>
<p>"Hello!" a voice cut through the room. Roman looked up startled and noticed a young man, standing on a podium. "Everyone should be here by now, so, let's begin! My name is Thomas and I welcome all of you to this years T.L.I.H. program!"</p>
<p>Compared to the tense atmosphere among the applicants Thomas' cheery mood seemed out of place.</p>
<p>"There are a lot of you though and my job is to water it down quite a bit until next month, so I'm gonna have to be a bit hard on you. If you can't keep up, that's perfectly fine. Listen to your bodies and when you can't, you can't. Just getting where you are now is an impressive feat and there's no shame in quitting."</p>
<p>Roman caught a few angry whispers. Apparently he wasn't the only one who couldn't allow himself to fail.</p>
<p>"Let's start with one of those good old ice breaker games so I can get to know you a little bit," Thomas continued. "Everyone who wants to become a hero; do fifty push-ups!"</p>
<p>The entire group obliged as a unit.</p>
<p>Thomas chuckled. "Yeah, that was expected. Believe it or not last year I actually had one who didn't. A bit weird to sign up if you don't want to become a hero, right?"</p>
<p>Nobody answered him.</p>
<p>Roman could have, the push-ups weren't too bad but he decided to save his breath. This was only the beginning after all.</p>
<p>Somewhere to his left someone dropped down, panting.</p>
<p>"Are you alright back there?" Thomas asked. "Like I said, there's no shame in quitting."</p>
<p>The guy sat up slowly, gasping for air, while all around him people finished up and stood up again.</p>
<p>Thomas jumped down from the podium. "Everyone who has a driver's license; twenty jumping jacks, please!"</p>
<p>Roman watched most of the others jump. There were only a handful of people standing still like he was.</p>
<p>He watched Thomas saunter over to the guy that was still panting and quietly talk to him until the guy nodded and stumbled towards the elevator. He was extremely bony, with absolutely no visible muscle and Roman wondered how he had expected to pass in the first place.</p>
<p>His eyes landed on a chubby person near the back and he wondered how quickly they would fail.</p>
<p>"Now, everyone who thinks pineapple doesn't belong on pizza! Fifty seven sit-ups!"</p>
<p>Thomas went on like that for a long time, asking the most trivial questions, but when he finally stopped he was the only person in the room that hadn't broken a sweat.</p>
<p>Except for the guy at the beginning nobody else had left.</p>
<p>"Take a little break everyone. Drink something," Thomas sat down at the edge of the podium and gestured over to a few water fountains, that Roman could have sworn hadn't been there before. "That was interesting! And now will probably be your only chance in a while to ask some questions, so if you got any; Shoot!"</p>
<p>"Who the fuck are you?" someone yelled. </p>
<p>"Language!" the cubby dude Roman had expected to quit scolded.</p>
<p>"Yeah, no excessive swearing please. And to answer your question, I already introduced myself, didn't I? But maybe you want more details," he leaned back on his arms a little. "My name is Thomas Sanders, I have a superpower and some of you might have already heard of me under a different name, that I'm sadly not allowed to tell you. Secret identity, you know?"</p>
<p>"Why did you send that guy earlier home? Maybe he has a power that makes up for the fact that he's not top fit?" someone else asked.</p>
<p>"Oh-kay, that's a bit more serious," Thomas took a breath. "Because, you see, it doesn't really matter what your powers are. Hear me out! For most abilities there are ways to neutralise them. Heck, I know some who's ability is to block powers! What I'm getting at is that you'll need to be able to be heroes even without superpowers. That's what this program is for. We can't let people who aren't prepared out there. Too many have died because they went into the fight without preparation, thinking that they could just make up for it with their powers."</p>
<p>The group had fallen silent.</p>
<p>"A few were lucky and made it but it's too high a risk," Thomas concluded. "I told that to him as well and he chose to go home. I didn't send him away. That's not how this works. This training is for you to train. To learn. But if you can't, you can't and that's perfect alright. It's better to give up and be a bit disappointed in yourselves than dead. You signed up for one of the most dangerous jobs there is but you still have the chance to back out. Whether you take that chance or not is your choice."</p>
<p>Roman looked around the group. A few looked unsure, some determined, others conflicted.</p>
<p>Was this seriously new to some of these people? Had they never read a newspaper or listed to the radio? There were less reports on hero deaths these days, thanks to the hero organisations but they still happened from time to time.</p>
<p>"Anyway," Thomas clapped his hands together, "I hope everyone took the opportunity to drink cause we still have some stuff to do before I can release you for lunch! Who wants to show off their abilities in hand to hand combat a bit? And no, no powers until I say so!"</p>
<p>When Thomas announced that it was time for lunch, hours later, Roman was drenched in sweat and holding a pack of frozen blueberries against a bruise on his cheek.</p>
<p>As it turned out the 'chubby dude', who had introduced themselves as Patton, was strong enough to lift him in the air and slam him down on the mats again. <br/>They had apologized repeatedly and had gotten him the blueberries and a water bottle, so Roman guessed they were cool.</p>
<p>This time, with all the candidates present, the dining room was filled to the brim.<br/>It was still pretty quiet, with most people out of breath, exhausted or simply so hungry that they didn't want to waste any time on talking.<br/>Roman fell somewhere in the middle of the categories.</p>
<p>Patton sat down next to him.</p>
<p>"It's weird to see this room so full," they said.</p>
<p>"Yeah," Roman found himself agreeing before their words fully registered. "Wait, you've been here before?"</p>
<p>"Of course! I've been staying at the hotel since yesterday afternoon!" Patton smiled brightly.</p>
<p>"So have I," Roman said flatly. "How come we didn't meet during dinner or breakfast?"</p>
<p>Patton shrugged. "Dunno. When did you eat? I was told that dinner started at nine but wasn't sure till when so I came at nine."</p>
<p>"I was told that it'd start at eight," Roman frowned. "I ate at eight."</p>
<p>"Hmm," Patton made with a frown. "I understand if you'd rather use your break for something else, but... Wanna try and find out what's the deal with that?"</p>
<p>"Sure, why not?" he shrugged. "I'm pretty sure the afternoon is going to be exhausting too, so there probably won't be a point in showering now and I've got nothing better to do."</p>
<p>After finishing up their meals, Roman and Patton decided to start in the lobby by the counter.</p>
<p>Julian sat in his spot, feet on the counter and a laptop that looked like it had been stolen from a junk yard and upgraded with car parts on his lap. </p>
<p>"Hey there, kiddo!" Patton greeted leaning on the counter.</p>
<p>"I'm like two years younger than you tops," Julian responded, not looking away from the computer screen.</p>
<p>"We had a question, Count Woe-lav," Roman rolled his eyes.</p>
<p>"I'm hacking into government files for my brother, come back when I got what I- Never mind! He owes me," with a swift movement he closed the laptop and turned to face them. Roman could see the exact moment that he realised what he had said in his eyes. "I... was not doing anything illegal. I promise... My brother is a very honest and... er... <em>law following</em> man and so am I, it's what our mothers - may they rest in peace - should they ever die - taught us to be... Uh... How can I help you?!"</p>
<p>Roman contemplated whether they should do something about the confessed crime but Patton apperently decided to just roll with it.</p>
<p>"We were just wondering why we were told different dinner times," they explained.</p>
<p>Julian raised an eyebrow. "What do you <em>think</em> happens when a few hundred <em>superpowered</em> young adults are left unsupervised in a small room for an unspecified amount of time?"</p>
<p>"Ah, okay, that makes sense," Patton nodded to themselves.</p>
<p>"Well, thanks for the help, Julian," Roman stuffed his hands in his pockets.</p>
<p>The teens made a face.</p>
<p>"Don't call me that. That's just a random ass name to pick!"</p>
<p>"It's on your name tag," Roman frowned.</p>
<p>"Doesn't make it my name," the teen spat. His phone buzzed and he picked it up, in a clear dismissal.</p>
<p>"Thanks, kiddo," Patton called over their shoulder as they lead Roman back to the elevator.</p>
<p>"Sure thing, Dad," Not-Julian answered, too quickly to have thought it over.</p>
<p>"Let's do something fun with the rest of our break," Patton suggested once the elevator had closed and grinned at Roman in a way that made it impossible to decline.</p>
<p>"You got something special in mind?" he just asked and smiled right back at his new friend.</p>
<p>"Dunno, you pick something!" they rocked back and forth on their feet.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. 'Chad'</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The year continues.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Roman studied the large blackboard.<br/>
On the plan of the week, they always wrote down not only the date but also how many weeks it had been since the beginning.</p><p>Now it read 46.</p><p>Forty-six weeks of physical training, first aid, lessons in controlling powers and finding ways out of all kinds of theoretical predicaments.<br/>
Later the situations would be training simulations and then, maybe one day, they would be real.</p><p>They had started out with 200 people and true to what Thomas had announced at the very beginning it had been watered down to 75.</p><p>"Are you coming?" Patton's voice startled Roman out of his thoughts. "I already checked. We have free time till lunch."</p><p>They wore a dress and had a frog clip in their hair.</p><p>The elevator had gotten stuck just a few days ago and had been closed off completely since then so they had to take the stairs up from the basement.</p><p>Not-Julian, who still refused to tell Roman his real name, didn't look up from his laptop as they passed him and just gave them a quick wave.<br/>
The kid looked sickly pale lately but Roman hadn't asked what was wrong. He had been busy and he was pretty sure that the kid wouldn't come to 'work' if he was actually ill.</p><p>"I heard there's a shopping mall somewhere around here," Roman mentioned as they stepped outside. "I don't have much money but we could just look around and stuff."</p><p>"Sounds great! I'd like to be around other people again," Patton beamed. "I mean - civilian people."</p><p>"Yeah, I get it," Roman smiled back at them. "Plus, I haven't seen the news or read a paper in forever. What even happened since we got here? Has the world been taken over by corn - wielding cows in astronaut helmets?"</p><p>Patton giggled at his theatrics.</p><p>"Why astronaut helmets?" they asked.</p><p>"I don't know. Maybe they're alien cows. They came from a galaxy far, far away to conquer Earth because someone send a TV signal out into the Universe and they saw all the alien invasion movies. So they thought it was a party. An invasion party," Roman shrugged.</p><p>Patton laughed. "And who send the signal?"</p><p>"Mhm. Good question," Roman stroked an imaginary goatee. "NASA? Nah, too obvious. Maybe it was Netflix and they somehow got someone's password?"</p><p>They went on like this, Patton asking questions and Roman building out the story of the corn - wielding alien cows in astronaut helmets. Which, by the time they got to the mall, apparently also had a burning hatred for Justin Bieber and an undying love for beagles.</p><p>The mall had big windows but a solid roof, much to Roman's relief.</p><p>They walked around aimlessly for a while, just looking around and trying on a few things here and there. It was the kind of stuff Roman's friends had tried to get him to do when he was younger but he had never had the time for. But now, as a legal adult, he found that it was actually kinda fun. Especially with Patton,  who switched the green 'they' wristband for the blue 'she' one at about ten o'clock.</p><p>"Hey, let's get some ice cream!" Patton suggested and pulled Roman towards the food court.</p><p>"I told you I don't really have money," Roman said but let her pull him along anyway. Mostly because he was pretty sure that he couldn't escape Patton's grasp unless she let him.</p><p>"I do. I can just pay for you!"</p><p>Roman went to protest but Patton didn't let him.</p><p>"It's not that much! I really have more than enough to invite my best friend out for ice cream!" she smiled at him over her shoulder and Roman knew that he had lost.</p><p>"You can be so stubborn sometimes," he muttered with no real malice behind it, shaking his head and Patton laughed again.</p><p>There was no queue by the ice cream parlour since it was still before noon and most people were either still at work or getting actual meals for lunch.</p><p>There were a lot more flavours than Roman remembered from when he had been younger. He did his best to ignore both chocolate and banana even if they were the only ones he actually knew.</p><p>"What can I get you?" the man behind the counter asked in the most deadpan voice Roman had ever heard. His nametag read Chad.</p><p>"Er, I'll take a scoop of cookies with rainbow sprinkles... and what do you want?" Patton played with her wristband.</p><p>"The same," Roman blurted out. If Patton ordered it, it couldn't be bad.</p><p>"That'll be 3.60$," the cashier said, still without any inflexion and put the first ice onto the counter. </p><p>"Hey, we have the same glasses!" Patton noticed excitedly as she pulled out her money.</p><p>The cashier looked up at her and raised an eyebrow. "Yes?"</p><p>Roman could tell that the guy was getting feed up with them so he quickly took both ice creams and gently pushed Patton away, only stopping to tell the man to have a nice day. He didn't respond.</p><p>The ice was good. Roman closed his eyes and could perfectly picture the small kitchen back at home where he and Remus would steal some of the dough on the rare occasions that Mamá baked. It tasted just like that raw dough and even had some chocolate pieces inside.</p><p>"Let's head back," Roman suggested. "So we're not late for lunch."</p><p>Patton stopped abruptly.</p><p>"Wait! I forgot something!" she handed Roman her cone. "I'll be right back!"</p><p>With that, she vanished into the crowd.</p><p>Roman stared after her for a moment. She hadn't had a bag with her that she could have left anywhere as far as he could remember and he had no idea what she could have possibly forgotten. Had she wanted to buy anything that she just hadn't mentioned?</p><p>With nothing better to do Roman licked off some of his sprinkles and chewed on them.</p><p>A few minutes later Patton appeared again with a small paper bag under her arm.</p><p>"Sorry I made you wait," she smiled apologetically and took her own cone back.</p><p>"It's fine," Roman shrugged. The question of what was in the bag burned on his tongue but he didn't ask.</p><p>Patton took ahold of his now free hand and together they walked towards the exit they had come in from.</p><p>The walk back was mostly silent and Roman finished up his cone just as they arrived outside the hotel. Patton had eaten a bit faster than him.</p><p>Someone had apparently oiled the door while they had been gone because it opened easily and quietly. Roman wondered if they had repaired more than that but the one neon light was still broken so he guessed that they hadn't. Baby steps.</p><p>Not-Julian didn't look up as they came in. He looked even paler now. Maybe he was sick and just too stubborn to stay at home. It sounded like something Roman would do and - if he was honest - had done multiple times. Except that he had done it because he couldn't afford days off. He was pretty sure that Not-Julian didn't have the same problem.</p><p>The next time they got a day off was on Christmas.</p><p>They were allowed to go home over the holidays or stay at the hotel if they didn't want that. Naturally Roman chose to go home.</p><p>He had enough money for two tickets with him, one to get home and one to get back to the hotel, and Patton had insisted to loan him some to get his Mamá a small present. They had also given him one, with the strict instructions to not open it before Christmas morning.</p><p>Roman took the first possible train. It was foggy and smelled like snow. While waiting at the platform he made a small ball fire between his hands to keep himself warm. It had become so much easier to control his flames over the past months.</p><p>He wondered if Remus would be there. Most likely he would. Would come back from <em>somewhere</em> and for just a few days they would all be together again and would catch up with each other about everything that had happened while they had been apart.</p><p>They train came, Roman got on and just a few minutes later fell asleep.</p><p>He woke up just barely before his stop but at least he was awake now. Well, more or less.</p><p>The walk from the train station to the apartment building they lived in wasn't very long but as soon as he turned the first corner Roman was made aware of how long he had been gone.</p><p>The place where the rundown cinema was supposed to be was empty. Something new was being built in its place but the constructions had barely started with the fundaments.</p><p>Roman hadn't know that the cinema would close, let also be torn down. A poster by the sidewalk showed an apartment building with prices. One of the flats that hadn't even been built yet was already sold.</p><p>With a heavy feeling in his, stomach Roman continued on.</p><p>There were new graffitis on the walls. A new store, selling cigarettes, alcohol and lottery tickets. Too many new things.</p><p>The apartment building was the same.</p><p>Roman slid his key into the lock and turned it and the door sprung open. The elevator was still full of the same writings and scribbles. The tenth floor, where Roman got out looked as grey as ever.</p><p>He pocketed his key and knocked. They had a doorbell but the sound of it gave Mamá headaches.</p><p>He heard shuffling and then the door opened.</p><p>Mamá wore her old apron, her hair was up in her usual bun and held back by a blue headband with polka dots on it.</p><p>"Hola, Mamá," Roman smiled and opened his arms.</p><p>"Estás en casa," she enveloped him in a tight hug.</p><p>In the kitchen, a timer beeped loudly and demanding and Mamá ushered him inside.</p><p>"<em>Your brother will be here in just a few hours</em>," she informed him in Spanish and went to put on her baking gloves. But Roman beat her to it and pulled out the tray barehanded. Another thing he had discovered through the program; he wasn't immune to only his own flames.</p><p>For the next hours Roman told Mamá everything while they made dinner.</p><p>He told her about the hotel, Patton and how they had become friends, Thomas and the other instructors, Not-Julian and his weird family and everything he had learned.</p><p>Mamá listened, asking questions from time to time and smiling at him almost the entire time.</p><p>It was already getting dark when Remus came.</p><p>He had grown a moustache and a patch of his hair was grey. He grinned at Roman and one of his teeth was missing.</p><p>But he didn't talk about where he'd been.</p><p>He stuck a toothpick into his gap to find a way that it would stay there but he didn't tell them how he had gotten it.</p><p>He joked that now he and Roman finally didn't look the same anymore but didn't give a real answer when Mamá asked why he had dyed his hair, other than claiming that he hadn't.</p><p>So Roman continued to carry the conversation during dinner and after until they wished each other goodnight and went to bed.</p><p>Christmas itself was almost normal. They exchanged gifts, ate cookies they had baked yesterday and lit candles.</p><p>Still, something felt off.</p><p>Roman couldn't figure out what was wrong until he stood on the train station again and hugged Mamá goodbye.</p><p>The promise of departure.</p><p>The fact that no matter what happened they'd have to leave again.</p><p>Not-Julian sat on his counter when Roman arrived late in the evening. There was a plate of sweets next to him and a lonely string of Christmas lights had been hung up over the key wall. It looked sad in the otherwise grey environment.</p><p>"How were your holidays?" Roman asked, trying to strike up a conversation.</p><p>"Alright, I guess," the teen shrugged. Roman noticed that his voice had gotten a lot deeper. "<em>Babushka</em> couldn't make it because she was the main suspect for the murder of her fourth husband, so that was kinda disappointing. But otherwise, it was okay. Uncail Ronan introduced us to his new partners and they are pretty cool."</p><p>Roman stared at him for a moment, trying to figure out whether he was supposed to ask or not.</p><p>"How was yours?" Not-Julian asked before he could decide.</p><p>"It was nice. I got to see Ma and my brother again," Roman shrugged.</p><p>"That's nice," Not-Julian said in a way that Roman couldn't tell whether he meant it or not. "By the way, your friend is here too. Same room as before."</p><p>"Really? Thanks," Roman smiled and swiped a chocolate bar in passing. The elevator was still out of commission so he jogged up the stairs and dropped off his bag in his room before going back to visit Patton. He had missed them.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>So, I'm not completely sure yet, but this might be the last chapter of Broken Glass Diamonds.<br/>I might write one more but likely not.</p><p>I am not done with the story tho (by far). But since it'd probably get boring to only have Roman's view for the entirety of this story I want you to please comment who's PoV you want to see. Whether to see the story continued from their view (for that only Roman and Patton would currently be options) or to get some more information about them (basically everyone mentioned so far except for the people that die in the first chapter and Remus). Depending on the person some parts might be a bit shorter tho.<br/>Please comment!</p><p>Have a nice day!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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